Category: Top Dog

Hi fellow puppy owners!

First time dog owners here.

We’re getting increasingly concerned, and honestly a bit desperate, about our male Labradoodle puppy. He just turned 11 months. At home, he’s actually a great dog. He listens reasonably well, is house-trained, and we can leave him alone for a decent amount of time. Aside from the usual attention-seeking when we’re on work calls and his habit of treating literally everything (his bed, pillows, blankets) as a toy, he’s calm and can entertain himself.

The moment we leave the house, everything changes. On walks he pulls extremely hard on the leash, gets distracted by absolutely everything, and wants to sniff and see it all. He seems very sensitive to any kind of stimulus. On rare occasions he can walk nicely for a short stretch, so it feels like he knows what to do, but he just can’t keep his focus. We train this daily, but with mixed success.

If he’s not allowed to go somewhere he wants, he starts whining and pulling even harder, to the point where it turns into a tug-of-war. He is much worse with dogs than with people. With people we pass on the street, things have clearly improved over time. However, when we actually stop and talk to someone, he still goes completely over the top. Other dogs overstimulate him even more. He gets extremely excited, jumps a lot, and struggles to regulate himself. If he can’t greet a dog the way he wants, he becomes very vocal and reactive.

When we stop to talk to people or hold him back, he sometimes jumps up and snaps or mouths at us. We see so many other dogs calmly sitting or lying next to their owners, but he just cannot settle. He seems constantly overwhelmed and extremely reactive to his environment.

This is not teenage regression in the sense that it suddenly started now. He already showed these behaviors earlier, although he was less vocal back then. Looking back, this was already visible in the litter. He was very attentive and demanding, always afraid to miss something, and had a much harder time settling and sleeping compared to his siblings. He would whine whenever he saw movement. We hoped he would grow out of it, but so far that hasn’t happened.

Has anyone experienced something similar with their dog, especially during adolescence? Is this still within the range of “normal” for his age and maturing process, or does this warrant extra attention and intervention?

We’re starting sessions with a dog therapist soon, but if there’s anything we can already work on in the meantime, we’d love to hear it. Right now it’s very difficult to take him anywhere that isn’t home, because of his reactivity around dogs and his inability to settle or walk properly on the leash.

Hi everyone! I went out of town for about a week now and I’m picking up my puppy from this inhome boarding place tomorrow. The couple is amazing and I get 3-4 videos everyday and she is having a blast.

She turned 6 months last week and I expect regression in training or just the routine we had before she left.

We had a very specific nap schedule and she was in the crate for every nap. At the inhome she slept in bed with them and the other puppies that they take care of. She is use to being around them and other dogs basically 24/7 the last week.

I wanted to ask if anybody had tips or advice on helping her get back on her schedule or if they notice their puppy was able to bounce back ok or was it tough?

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Hi! So I’ve had my puppy for over two months now and absolutely adore him. We got him when he was 11 lbs at 12 weeks and now he’s 22 weeks and 35 pounds. He’s been teething a lot recently and losing teeth left and right. But he still bites all the time! I’ve followed every rule at this point for puppy mouthiness. I’ve tried walking away when he bites. I’ve tried saying “ouch” really loud and taking my hand away (though I think he gets more excited with this). I’ve tried redirecting him to toys. But he still bites so much. I genuinely don’t know what to do. He loves people and is very sweet but when he gets very stimulated, he wants to bite your hand or ankles. He knows he’s not supposed to do it, as when we say “ouch” he’ll then sit down or walk away, but if we pet him again a minute or two later, he bites again. He doesn’t bite hard, but he’s getting a bunch of adult teeth right now, so it’s hurting more.

For context, he’s 30% Australian cattle dog, 15% Rottweiler and a mix of a bunch of other random breeds. We do herding exercises with him and keep his brain busy with kongs and puzzles.

Any help would be appreciated! Just need anything to help with this behavior.

I’ve been working on the relaxation protocol with my 8 month old rescue, and I just have a couple questions for those who have done it before.

She’s very smart and obedient during training sessions (when distractions are present that’s a different story, lol). She blew through task set 1.

If the tasks are like “Sit while you count to 5 seconds. Sit while you count to 10 seconds.” Do you break and reset the sit between these tasks? Or do you reward in between and restart the count?

If I ask her to sit, sometimes she’ll fall into a down especially if there are a few tasks in a row. Is it okay to leave her here or should she be sitting since that’s what I asked? The introduction to the relaxation protocol says that if a down is more comfortable for the dog, then it’s okay. I just want to make sure I’m not rewarding her for the wrong things.

Hi! I’m looking for real-life experiences with Bolognese dogs and children. We’re a family with a 7-year-old and are considering this breed because we’re hoping for a small, gentle dog with a soft temperament that enjoys cuddling and can settle calmly at home. I’d love to hear how Bolognese dogs are with kids in everyday life, whether they tend to be calm indoors, and how they usually handle being close to and handled by children. Any honest experiences or things we should be aware of in a family setting would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!

I didnt know where to post this hopefully this is okay here..

Just need to rant about this because I dont know what else to do and I feel this like is really affecting my mental health.

We have a 6 year old beagle cross who weve had since he was a puppy who we love more than anything but he has alot of behavioural issues, he has severe separation anxiety which means he can't be left alone this has been going on since he was about 2 I feel like we've tried everything , training, doggy day care (too expensive) He used to be crate trained whilst we worked but then he started becoming aggressive and going for us when we tried putting him in, then we started leaving him in a safe part of the house only to come home to it being destroyed lino ripped up carpets ripped apart so we no longer leave him i take him everywhere with me and have to leave him in the car when im doing something where he cant come. I now have a toddler who is 3 and I walk them both but its getting ridiculous he will pull constantly, he is very strong and has nearly pulled the pram over on several occasions. We also live in a flat so getting out the house in itself is hard work. If we have anyone round he will plays up & steal items and if you try and retrieve them he will get aggressive. We've tried rescues no one will have him because of his aggressive he shows sometimes he doesn't show this alot tbh. We've tried pets4homes and we have had interest but not the right sort of person we feel would be the right fit. I feel constantly stressed out with him and like Im trapped living my life around him. Isit just me or could other people cope with this? People have said to get him put down but we are completely against that as his only 6 and the aggression he shows is only really when his guarding something. I really dont know what to do anymore, its not fair on him or us.

Thankyou for reading

❤️

Wish I could post a photo of my gal in her little puffy winter jacket, but my 4-year-old 45 lb catahoula/lab/pitt lady never seems to mind the cold. Granted, she also loves the heat and would happily run herself into heat exhaustion so perhaps it’s that she’s not great at self preservation generally. Anyhow, we go to the dog park even in the single digits and she’s happy as a clam to fetch, be a gladiator with the other dogs, or just explore. Thing is, my city is in an intense cold snap and the real feel is like -2. So it’s beyond our usual threshold.

I kept her in yesterday and played tug of war, but day 2 she’s bouncing off the walls.

Given the temp, is it unsafe to take her out for a proper run around per her heart’s desire?

I want to post a video with more context but for some reason I cannot?